Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ninfobot?ref=ts&fref;=ts Twitter: https://twitter.com/Ninfobot Song: Future World Music New Beginnings Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior (Portuguese pronunciation: [nejˈmaʁ dɐ ˈsiwvɐ ˈsɐ̃tus ˈʒũɲoʁ]; born 5 February 1992), commonly known as Neymar, is a Brazilian footballer who plays for La Liga club FC Barcelona and the Brazilian national team, as a forward or winger. At the age of 19, Neymar won the 2011 South American Footballer of the Year award, after coming third in 2010.[2] He followed this up by winning it again in 2012. In 2011 Neymar received nominations for the FIFA Ballon d'Or, where he came 10th, and the FIFA Puskás Award, which he won.[3] He is known for his acceleration, speed, dribbling, finishing and ability with both feet. His playing style has earned him critical acclaim, with fans, media and former players drawing comparison to former Brazil forward Pelé, who has called Neymar "an excellent player", while Ronaldinho states "he will be the best in the world".[4][5][6] Neymar joined Santos in 2003 and, after rising through the ranks, was promoted to their first team squad. He made his debut for Santos in 2009, and was voted the Best Young Player of the 2009 Campeonato Paulista. Further honours followed, with Neymar being voted best player as Santos won the 2010 Campeonato Paulista, and also being top scorer in the 2010 Copa do Brasil with 11 goals. He finished the 2010 season with 42 goals in 60 games as his club achieved the Double. Neymar was again voted best player of the year in 2011 as his side retained the state title and Santos also winning the 2011 Copa Libertadores in which Neymar scored 6 goals in 13 appearances. He also played a key role in securing a Continental Double for his team, Santos' first since 1963. He received the Bronze Ball in the 2011 FIFA Club World Cup, with Santos making it to the final, where they were defeated 4--0 by Barcelona.[7][8] Neymar has represented Brazil at Under-17, Under-20 and senior levels. On 10 August 2010, at the age of 18, he made his debut for the Seleção in a friendly match against the United States; he scored from a header in the 28th minute, contributing to Brazil's 2--0 win. Neymar was the top scorer of the 2011 South American Youth Championship with nine goals, including two in the final, in the 6--0 win against Uruguay, helping Brazil to win their eleventh title in the competition. Neymar was selected as part of Luiz Felipe Scolari's Brazil squad for the 2013 Confederations Cup on home soil. For the tournament he was assigned the iconic number 10 shirt. On 30 June, Neymar scored Brazil's second goal in the 3--0 final win over Spain. Neymar's performances saw him awarded the golden ball for the best player of the tournament. [9] In 2012 and 2013, SportsPro named him the most marketable athlete in the world.[10] In December 2013, Neymar was ranked by The Guardian as the sixth best footballer in the world.[11]. On 24 May 2013, Santos announced that they had received two offers for Neymar.[60] The following day, Neymar announced he would sign with FC Barcelona on 27 May 2013 and join the team after playing in the 2013 Confederations Cup. Neither Neymar nor the clubs released details on the transfer fee or personal terms, except to say he signed a five-year deal.[61] On 3 June 2013, Neymar was unveiled by Barcelona after passing medical tests and signing a contract that would keep him at the club through June 2018.[62] Neymar was presented at the Nou Camp in front of 56,500 fans a record turnout for a Brazilian player[63] Club vice president Josep Maria Bartomeu said Neymar's transfer fee was €57 million (£48.6m) On 30 July 2013, Barcelona drew 2--2 against Lechia Gdańsk in a preseason friendly; this was Neymar's unofficial debut with the team, and he came on as a substitute On 7 August 2013, Neymar scored his first goal in a Barcelona shirt during a 7--1 friendly win over the Thailand national team in Bangkok. Neymar made his competitive debut for Barcelona during the opening game of the 2013--14 La Liga season as a 63rd minute substitute in a 7--0 win against Levante UD.[68] On 21 August, he scored his first competitive goal for the club in the first leg of the 2013 Supercopa de España against Atlético Madrid.[69] On 18 September, he made his UEFA Champions League debut, assisting a Gerard Piqué goal as Barça beat AFC Ajax 4--0 in their opening match of the 2013--14 tournament.[70] On 24 September, Neymar scored his first goal in La Liga in Barça's 4--1 defeat of Real Sociedad at Camp Nou.[71] On 26 October 2013, Neymar scored the opening goal in his first El Clásico appearance as Barça beat Real Madrid 2--1 at Camp Nou. Later in the match he assisted the team's winning goal scored by Alexis Sánchez. On 11 December 2013, Neymar recorded his first three Champions League goals as he scored a hat-trick in a 6--1 win over Celtic in Barça's final Group H match.

• published: 06 Jan 2014
• views: 41